Why Lung’aho lost his job as Kenya volleyball team coach
The Kenya Volleyball Federation opted to elevate former national women volleyball team coach David Lung’aho to the technical director’s position after he lost control of the dressing room, Nairobi News has established.
Lung’aho, one of the most successful coaches in the history of Kenyan Sport, was replaced at the helm of the African Queens earlier this month by the KVF just after returning with the team from the FIVB World Cup in Japan.
While the official communication from KVF for Lung’aho’s elevation was that the move was made inorder to put him in a position “where he would share his experience all round”, a source within the federation says the was coach technically shoved aside.
“Lung’aho is a very good coach but he was too close to some of the first team players. He was losing his authority in the dressing room which is a very dangerous thing,” a member of KVF’s National Executive Committee told Nairobi News.
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An example cited by the NEC member is when the team staged a sit in and refused to train while in Australia during the FIVB Grand Prix.
“The players refused to talk to Lung’aho and asked him to leave the room. They wanted their grievances to be addressed directly by the Federation representative and not through him,” our source source said.
Lung’aho has since told a section of the mainstream media that he will concentrate on his current coaching role with the Kenya Prisons women volleyball team, and that he remains open to offers from all over the continent for a national team coaching job.
Lung’aho, one of the most successful coaches in the history of Kenyan sport, was replaced by his assistant Japheth Munala.
Meanwhile, the new coach’s first assignment is to ensure the national team qualifies for next year’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.